Managing Design Knowledge with Mixed-Initiative Dialogue

This paper is based on ongoing work in developing interactive interfaces to formal methods for encoding design knowledge. It reports on the development of a shared graphical notation to support user interaction with design knowledge based on mixed-initiative. Mixed-initiative provides a model of interaction where both the designer and the knowledge formalism may share responsibility over decisions. The paper discusses how a formal visual notation can support the mixed-initiative mode for developing and managing formal design knowledge. The notation addresses on the dialogue problem between the user and a knowledge based formalism and illustrates a model of interaction in which the user and the formalism can share and input data through a common shared resource, on a common shared task. The paper demonstrates the use of this notation in common decision tasks and the implications for seamless interaction with design support systems.